The present invention relates to a cooling system for cooling electronic aircraft equipment, an aircraft equipped with such a cooling system and a method for cooling electronic aircraft equipment.
Modern aircraft are subjected to an increasing demand of power electronic functions due to performance improvements and weight saving advantages provided by such technology. These power electronic functions, such as avionics or cabin management system functions, are typically allocated to electronic aircraft equipment. As a result, the number and power density of electronic equipment arranged in modern aircraft is increasing.
This technology depends on appropriate cooling systems for ensuring reliable performance of the electronic aircraft equipment. Specifically, these cooling systems are configured to provide cooling energy so as to ensure that a temperature of the electronic aircraft equipment to be cooled does not exceed a threshold value which would cause a loss or a failure of the corresponding functions. Examples of known cooling systems include active cooling systems, either in forced air or liquid form, or conductive cooling systems, e.g., by means of heat sinks. Due to the increasing power density of electronic equipment, however, the use of active cooling systems becomes more important as these cooling systems provide high cooling capacities.
For ensuring operability of the aircraft, these cooling systems are typically employed with a cooling capacity which is greater than is needed for the vast majority of the operational time of the aircraft. For example, there is typically a high demand for cooling of the electronic aircraft equipment when the aircraft is operated on ground. However, during flight, where temperatures are reduced due to altitude, the cooling requirements of the cooling system are correspondingly reduced. In other words, for safety reasons, these cooling systems are typically oversized and redundant. Because such cooling systems thereby add significant weight and complexity to the aircraft, they offset the weight saving advantages provided by this technology.